The new nation, according to Ambassador Mawien Makol, began the application processes to join the more than 54 nations, all of which have historical links to Britain dating back to the colonial period in most African countries.

Mawien said his country lobbied its allies in the region to back up the bid, despite human rights and press freedom concerns which form the basis of the condition which an aspiring nation must be seen to meet.

"There are a lot of benefits which we shall get in joining [the] Commonwealth. First of all, we are members of Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the African Union. We are also members of the United Nations. Some of these nations are members of the Commonwealth. So there are economics and political benefits for us”, Makol told Sudan Tribune on arrival from a trip to London on Friday.

Makol was part of the delegation that joined South Sudan’s foreign minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin on the trip to London this week. In a speech on Monday, Marial said that he would be discussing prospective membership of the Commonwealth with officials from the United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office during his visit.

"We hope to get the membership as soon as possible, hopefully before the end of this year. The processes have already moved two critical steps. It has moved the ambassadorial and ministerial levels of the member countries, now it is at the level of heads of state”, Makol explained.

He did not say which countries in the region were backing the bid, although multiple diplomats at the ministry indicated that the country’s bid to join the group is receoving little support from Britain, Australia, Canada and some of the allies which are widely viewed as influential members in the group.

But many government officials have openly expressed support.

“Of course the admission would have to have the unanimous support and approval of all or the majority [of] member countries for us to get the membership. Some details also needs to be worked out”, he said.

Human and civil right activists as well as members of the media have not indicated approval of the decision by the country to join the club, some of whom have argued that freedom of speech has widely been suppressed while judiciary appears to have serious weaknesses and fails to function as an independent institution.

Many opposition parties in South Sudan say they feel political freedom in the young nation is truncated.

“Given the overwhelming evidence about the weakness of the institutions of government, it would not reflect well on the integrity of the Commonwealth to admit countries which have not shown respect to their own constitutions. There are people who feel that government of the Republic of South Sudan has not shown significant commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights and the democracy," a South Sudanese journalist, who preferred anonymity, told Sudan Tribune Friday.

"The current conflict explains it all. It does not need any additional justification," he added.

(ST)

Comments on the Sudan Tribune website must abide by the following rules. Contravention of these rules will lead to the user losing their Sudan Tribune account with immediate effect.

- No inciting violence
- No inappropriate or offensive language
- No racism, tribalism or sectarianism
- No inappropriate or derogatory remarks
- No deviation from the topic of the article
- No advertising, spamming or links
- No incomprehensible comments

Due to the unprecedented amount of racist and offensive language on the site, Sudan Tribune tries to vet all comments on the site.

There is now also a limit of 400 words per comment. If you want to express yourself in more detail than this allows, please e-mail your comment as an article to comment@sudantribune.com

Kind regards,

The Sudan Tribune editorial team.

15 February 2014 07:45, by Knight In Shining Armor

Forget about commonwealth, come back home and clean the mess our leaders in Juba created for us. what are you talking about, we have failed government and the failed government is asking for commonwealth membership? We should be shameful of ourselves by now, you should better ask for relieve aid for the people who are dieing day and night from this senseless war.

WHEN THERE IS A SUCCESFUL PERSON,THERE MUST BE A GOOD INTELIGENT WOMAN,AND WHEN THERE IS A FAILURE PERSON MAKING POOR CHOICES IN LIFE,THERE MUST BE AROGANT STUPID WOMAN GIVING WRONG ADVISE.DR RIEK MACHAR HAS MARRIED A WRONG WOMAN,SHE CAN`T EVEN SAY MY HUSBAN ,WE CANOT AFFORD SECOND REBELLION!!YOU HAVE BLOOD IN YOUR HANDS!!!

The Berlin Meeting: What’s at stake?2015-02-25 11:33:06
By the Sudan Democracy First Group (SDFG)
Between 25 and 27 February, Berlin will become the hub for the Sudanese unarmed and armed opposition, invited by the German Foreign Ministry and the (...)

Can a democratic government extend its own life?2015-02-23 07:32:25
By Dr Lam Akol
Last Thursday, the government tabled before parliament an amendment bill in order to amend the Constitution for the Government to extend its life for two more years. In a (...)

Press Release from the SPLM/A (IO) in Uganda2015-02-11 09:39:09
February 10, 2015
1. The office of the SPLM/A (IO) and the presence of its diplomatic representation that was established under the Kampala outcome of the 21st August 2014 is operational and has (...)